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The Scaldia Dock in Vlissingen, looking south west towards the Scheldt. The aborted STO
container terminal would have been located on the north bank (right), opposite Verbrugge Terminals
on the south bank. (Photo: ZSP, 2010)
The Power of Knowledge Engineering
prioritise the Elbe deepening and did not
want to hand Berlin a reason not to support
it, but that project is still in abeyance
and faces yet further objections.
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Image problems
On top of everything, continuous problems
during the construction period have
compromised JadeWeserPort’s image and
claims between the various partners over
extra costs and charges do not help convince
shipping lines to call there. Hinterland
connections are not ideal, and having
the largest container shipping company
as a partner in the terminal may be
more of a hindrance than a help.
Add to that the fact that
Wilhelmshaven is hardly a centre of international
business. It remains to be seen
how Eurogate will overcome this difficult
situation, particularly as the Hamburg
and Bremerhaven facilities are also suffering
from the present economic crisis.
The continuing problems of the
Eurozone have severely dented the recovery
from the 2008-9 recession that could
be seen in 2010 and the early part of 2011.
Europe’s economy is bumping along, but
unfortunately it is impossible to time
mega-projects such as JWP to come on
stream during an “up” cycle.
Vlissingen blow
Wilhelmshaven is not the only port that
is suffering. As reported on worldcargonews.com
on 8 May, the Belgian firms Seainvest
and Zuidnatie have finally pulled
the plug on their container terminal
project in the Dutch port of Vlissingen
(Flushing), part of Zeeland Seaports. The
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PORT DEVELOPMENT
55-ha site of the proposed Scaldia Terminal
Operator (STO) facility has been returned
to the port authority (ZSP).
“The market we aimed at has collapsed,”
said a spokesman for Sea-Invest,
the 70% partner in STO. Zuidnatie director
Marcel Dubourg told Antwerp
publication De Lloyd: “As the recession
spread, container lines became ever more
reluctant to move to Flushing.”
The project was unveiled in autumn
2010 in a high profile ceremony with the
chief guest being the (then) Dutch Head
of State, Queen Beatrix, but nothing materialised.
Last June the 375m perpendicular
quay was leased to Supermaritime
along with a 9-ha section of the 42-ha
STO terminal area. It is understood that
Verbrugge Terminals could take a further
13-ha of the land handed back to ZSP.
The other private container terminal
initiative in Vlissingen, the 50:50 project
of Verbrugge and Eurogate Group, is dormant
and its future must be open to doubt.
Similarly the chances of ZSP’s own preferred
project, Westerschelde Container
Terminal (WCT), ever being built must
be very slim. There have been no “takers”
to replace PSA, which inherited the
project when it took over HesseNoord-
Natie, but pulled out of it in 2010.
M&S anchor
Questions are also being asked about DP
World London Gateway. Phase 1 of the
facility is due to open towards the end of
this year. An intermodal rail service agreement
has been signed with DB Schenker
Rail (UK), but there is no hint about any
shipping lines making a commitment and
no-one has signed up for the huge, adjacent
logistics park.
However, at the time of writing (mid-
May), there are rumours that Marks &
Spencer will sign up for 1M ft 2 of warehousing.
As M&S sources most of its nonfood
ambient goods from China and SEA,
(a) deep sea carrier(s) must be waiting in
the wings. Separately, there is a rumour
that Evergreen will switch its Thamesport
calls (but not its Felixstowe calls) to London
Gateway. (Hutchison has its own
problems at Thamesport. The automated
yard equipment is now 20 years old, but
throughput does not really justify new investments).
This is not an easy time for DP World.
It has massive investment commitments,
including around US$1B in London
Gateway up to the end of 2014, but its
parent Dubai World is under pressure to
speed up asset sales before its first debt
repayment deadline in September 2015.
Dubai World reached a US$25B debt restructuring
deal in 2011 with a banking
consortium led by Abu Dhabi Commercial
Bank. DP World has sold its Hong
Kong terminals and a breakbulk operation
in Belgium to improve liquidity.
Dubai World has an 80% stake in DP
World and wants to hold on to it.
DP World acquired P&O Ports in February
2006, including the conditional
planning approval awarded in June 2005.
Full consent was awarded in June 2007,
but DP World’s decision to proceed surprised
some observers. There is a view that
P&O Ports went to planning in order to
increase its sale appeal, but had no real
intention of developing Shellhaven as the
cost, which includes all the civil infrastructure
and dredging out to “The Sunk” 100
miles from the port and “straightening”
part of the Thames, was just too high. ❏
Glimpse of London Gateway landside
equipment park in March this year: Kalmar
shuttle carrier and automated stacking crane
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May 2013